(Photo: “Dead Man Walking” by Jake Heggie was twenty-five years old on Sunday, September 14th. In San Francisco, its anniversary was celebrated by the opening of a production, one of the 80 productions worldwide, with the composer, Jake Heggie there to receive the San Francisco Opera Medal, and Sister Helen Prejean, from whose book the opera arose, and retold in {…}
(Photo: Matthew Washburn/San Francisco Opera) San Francisco Opera honored composer Jake Heggie with the San Francisco Opera Medal on Sept. 14, 2025. The presentation took place following the 25th anniversary premiere performance of “Dead Man Walking.” Matthew Shivlock, the company’s Tad and Dianne Taube General Director, bestowed the famed composer with the award. “Thank you for welcoming me in and {…}
(Credit: James Niebuhr) Jake Heggie has joined the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s composition faculty. Heggie will begin in his new position in the fall, 2025. In a statement, Heggie said, “Collaboration and hard work are at the heart of my creative life, and I see the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as a vibrant hub of possibility and connection. {…}
An egomaniac goes on an obsessive revenge tour to heal his bruised ego, in the process destroying himself and the entire community that he is supposed to lead and protect. In a way, “Moby Dick” is a perfect story for our times, especially given what has transpired in the past six weeks. It also connects perfectly with an incident that {…}
Opera Parallèle has announced details for its benefit evening, “In Pursuit of a Dream: A 15th Anniversary Celebration Honoring Composer Jake Heggie.” The event will be held on March 27 at the City Club of San Francisco and will feature legendary mezzo-sopranos Susan Graham and Frederica von Stade along with other artists. They will perform a program of musical selections {…}
The winners of the 64th annual Musical America Artist of the Year Awards have been announced. Conductor and soprano Barbara Hannigan has been named Artist of the Year for 2025. Hannigan made her conducting debut at age 40 at the Chatelet in Paris. She currently serves as the Principal Guest Conductor of Göteborgs Symfoniker, the Principal Guest Conductor of Orchester {…}
(Photo credit: Curtis Perry) Baritone Joshua Hopkins and Yannick Nézet-Séguin give the U.S. orchestral premiere of Jake Heggie and Margaret Atwood’s “Songs for Murdered Sisters.” Hopkins’ sister, Nathalie Warmerdam, was one of the victims in one of Canada’s worst cases of domestic violence. Since Warmerdam’s murder in 2015, Hopkins has since set out on a journey to use his voice {…}
OPERA America named seven exemplary artists, administrators, and advocates to the Opera Hall of Fame as the class of 2024. The 2024 Opera Hall of Fame inductees are: Adele Addison, soprano and teacher Justino Díaz, bass-baritone and teacher Jake Heggie, composer and mentor Carol F. Henry, founding trustee and philanthropist Wayne Sanders, artist, pianist, and arts leader Sarah Billinghurst Solomon, {…}
Classical Pride has announced its five-day festival for Pride 2024. Tenor Nicky Spence and “RuPaul’s Drag Race’s” Monet X Change and Thorgy Thor, among other queens, kick off the celebration with “Classical Drag.” This crossover event features drag performances of arias from “Carmen,” “Turandot,” “Tosca,” and more. Following this, the Fourth Choir, conducted by Nicholas Chalmers presents works by Benjamin {…}
San Francisco Performances has announced its 2024-25 season. This article features vocal pieces only. For the company’s 45th Anniversary Gala tenor Nicholas Phan and composer and pianist Jake Heggie take the stage. Performance Date: October 4, 2024 Tenor Karim Sulayman and guitarist Sean Shibe will present works from their album “Broken Branches.” Performance Date: October 12, 2024 Opening the “Art {…}
(Photo credit: Jiyang Chen) In celebration of its 25th anniversary Music of Remembrance will give the world premiere of “Before It All Goes Dark,” a new opera by Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer. The creative team based the opera on “Mac’s Journey,” the true story of Gerald “Mac” McDonald, a gravely ill and deeply troubled Vietnam War veteran, which was {…}